Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly and director Mark Walter have begun exploring the sale of their stakes in the club to majority owner Clearlake Capital. Multiple sources indicate that talks have started within Chelsea's ownership group, stemming from a rift first observed in 2024.
Boehly and Walter each hold a 12.8% stake in the club. They are reported to value Chelsea at £5bn, which would mean each could receive approximately £640m from a sale. Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss, who also owns 12.8%, is closely aligned with the pair, though his position is currently unclear.
Clearlake Capital, led by co-founders Behdad Eghbali and Jose E. Feliciano, holds a 61.5% majority stake. Eghbali has become the most influential figure at Chelsea since 2023, with significant involvement in transfer dealings.
Boehly is set to be replaced as Chelsea chairman at the end of the season by a Clearlake-appointed representative, under a pre-agreed arrangement from when the consortium acquired the club in 2022 for £2.3bn. This potential sale would further reduce Boehly's influence, having previously served as interim sporting director.
Sources within Chelsea and the ownership group have downplayed the rift, pointing to images of Boehly and Eghbali together at key matches. However, ongoing plans for Stamford Bridge's redevelopment or a new stadium have been a source of tension, with differences over the project's design and scale.